Character, and specifically its neglect, is the number one issue of our age. A society that is not grounded in deep values, that doesn’t know who its heroes are and that lacks a commitment to the common good, is one that is failing. Such we have become.
Today sees the launch at the House of Lords of the Jubilee Centre of Character and Values, to be based at the University of Birmingham. The multi-million-pound investment over 10 years comes from the John Templeton Foundation, set up by the American-born philanthropist. The aim of the centre is to promote and strengthen “character” within schools, families, communities and companies. It argues that character strengths can be taught, are critical to a life well led, and will benefit all aspects of the country if they are more widely in evidence.
I am fed up with people telling me what I should be doing, thinking and being. Give it a rest – we have enough from our bossy, inept government and its stooges like the ASA. They rummage in our litter bins, they want to read our emails, they tell us which light bulbs to put in our lamps. Then there are our bossy inept bishops who get purple fever and do the same to us from their palaces. Nag, nag, nag all week long. They all deserve to be deconstructed.
Just imagine what it is going to be like with women bishops.